Federal judge in Alabama rules in favor of freedom to marry in second case

January 27, 2015

On Tuesday, January 27, U.S. District Court Judge Callie V. Granade struck down Alabama's ban on marriage between same-sex couples for a second time in one week, ruling in favor of the freedom to marry in a second case.

The ruling was in the case Strawser v. Strange, which was filed in September of 2014 by James Strawser and John Humphrey, who are unmarried and wish to marry in their home state of Alabama. That case is led by Christine C. Hernandez of The Hernandez Firm, LLC and David G. Kennedy of The Kennedy Law Firm. Learn more about the case at I Am A Parent.

This ruling comes just three days after Judge Granade ruled in favor of the freedom to marry in the case Searcy v. Strange, which was filed on behalf of Cari Searcy and Kim McKeand, who wish to have their out-of-state marriage recognized in Alabama. Judge Granade issued a 14 day stay in both of these cases.

Freedom to Marry founder and president Evan Wolfson said today:

This victory in Alabama is the latest in a number of marriage wins from a bipartisan cascade of courts across the country, including in the deep South. When the first couples marry, their neighbors across Alabama will see that families are helped and no one is hurt. As we look forward to a nationwide ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court this summer, this tremendous momentum shows that America - all of America - is truly ready for the freedom to marry.

Ben Cooper, Equality Alabama Board Chairman, added:

This second ruling from Judge Granade marks another step forward for equality in Alabama: It affirms that denying the freedom to marry to same-sex couples in Alabama is unconstitutional, and that no one in our state should be told it is illegal to marry the person they love. We are hopeful that in just two weeks, we will at last see committed same-sex couples in Alabama finally able to say 'I do' in the state they call home.

Freedom to Marry was the campaign to win marriage nationwide. With the Supreme Court victory on June 26, 2015, the work of this strategic campaign – though not the larger movement – was achieved, and Freedom to Marry wound down its operations, closing in early 2016. For inquiries, please email legacy@freedomtomarry.org.